In restaurants and cafes, coffee often is brewed into decanters, such as glass coffee pots, which are placed on hot plates to keep the coffee warm. Coffee typically is brewed at a temperature near 200.degree. F., and kept warm at a temperature near 180.degree. F. At these high temperatures, coffee breaks down over time, and becomes bitter and distasteful to the consumer. Therefore, old coffee periodically is thrown out and replaced with freshly brewed coffee. However, the hectic pace in a restaurant or cafe can cause the waitstaff to forget how long a given pot of coffee has been on the hot plate.
One current device to prevent broken-down coffee from being served is a plastic dial indicator shaped in the form of a clock face that clips around the outside of the neck of a coffee pot. The clock face includes hands that may be rotated by a user to show the time that the pot was brewed. Although the indicator has the face of a clock, it does not keep time.
Such a dial indicator device suffers from several problems. During the workday, waitstaff often are rushed, and may set the dial indicator some time before or after the coffee was brewed, or forget to set the dial indicator at all. Where the dial indicator is set when the coffee is brewed, it may be set to an incorrect time. When it is time to throw the coffee out, the waitstaff may notice the dial indicator late, or may not notice the dial indicator at all. Finally, the waitstaff may notice the dial indicator but purposefully ignore it, presuming, perhaps correctly, that the dial indicator is not accurate. As a result, it is difficult to ensure consumers that they will receive a fresh cup of coffee.
Another device to prevent broken-down coffee from being served is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,143 to Peterson, which shows a coffee pot stopper device having a pouring passage that is closed by a valve vane after a timer has expired, thereby preventing coffee from being poured from the pot. Several problems exist with the Peterson device. For example, the device must be removed each time coffee is added to the pot such as when the coffee pot is placed under a brewing machine. In addition, the device might close as a waitperson is pouring a cup of coffee for a patron. Further, the device must be set by a waitperson when coffee is introduced to the pot, which the waitperson may forget to do or delay doing. Finally, the device is bulky and contains moving parts that are likely to become soiled or rusted.
As consumers increasingly are demanding freshly brewed coffee, it is imperative for restaurants and cafes to provide quality controls to serve patrons as freshly brewed coffee as possible. To that end, it would be desirable to provide a device that attaches to a coffee pot, automatically keeps track of the length of time since the coffee was brewed, and indicates to the waitstaff when to throw the coffee out and brew a fresh pot.